Apple Stores now fixing cracked iPhone 5C screens

iPhone 5C owners can now take their shattered devices to Apple Stores for screen repairs.

Apple Stores are now able to replace cracked iPhone 5C screens while you wait.

The $149 screen-repair service is being offered for the first time on Monday for Apple's new "budget" phone. Apple began offering screen repairs for the iPhone 5 in June. Apple's flagship iPhone 5S and the older-model iPhone 4S are still not eligible for in-store screen repairs.

Replacing screens on site marks a big policy change for the Apple Store. Before Monday, Apple would ship customers' phones to an off-site repair center to fix cracked screens, costing customers $229.

An Apple(AAPL) Store employee confirmed to CNNMoney that it began offering iPhone 5C screen replacements on Monday. A spokesman for Apple declined to comment. The on-site screen fix story first surfaced as a rumor on 9to5mac last week

The iPhone 5C was released in September as Apple's lower-cost smartphone. The move to offer in-store repairs is seemingly a response to the rising popularity of third-party repair services, which are cheaper but void iPhone warranties.